I have had this question for some time. Why are most Sikhs named Singh which I understand means lion? And how are they distinguished from one another if their names are all the same?
IIRC,the man who founded Sikhism,Guru Nanak wanted a religion free from all impurities of caste & in North India,it's still a practise among Hindus to have their caste name as their last name(Yadav,Rajput etc).The use of a word like Singh eliminates that & also reflects the independent & warrior nature of Sikhs(embodied by the lion).Quiet a few Sikhs use their village name or extended family name along with their original names as a matter of distinction.
They take middle names... although a lot of them
have taken middle names like "Badal"(cloud)